Systems and methods for unmanned aerial system communication

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods may provide unmanned aerial system (UAS) communication, a method performed by a UAS includes obtaining first digital information that indicates a position of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of the UAS; obtaining second digital information that identifies a zone of a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM); determining whether an airspace violation has occurred by comparing the position of the UAV with the zone of the NOTAM, based on the first digital information and the second digital information; and controlling the UAS to warn a user of the UAS about the airspace violation occurring or potentially occurring, or controlling the UAV to auto return or land, based on the determining.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No.62/994,576, filed on Mar. 25, 2020, the disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to systems and methods foroperation of unmanned aerial systems, and more specifically, to thestorage of onboard charts in an unmanned aerial system (UAS), update ofthe onboard charts over a network in real-time, and correlation of aunmanned aerial vehicle's (UAV's) position with the chart data toidentify whether the UAV's flight is legal.

BACKGROUND

At present, a UAV does not obtain real-time information concerningwhether its flight is legal from an airspace viewpoint, and may,therefore, operate in restricted airspace without permission. BecauseUAV pilots may not need to be licensed, they may not even know whatrestricted airspace is, or how to avoid it. Technical means to at leastinform a pilot and/or avoid flight into restricted airspace maytherefore be required.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present disclosure may solve the above problemsand/or other problems.

According to one or more embodiments, a method performed by an unmannedaerial system (UAS) is provided. The method includes obtaining firstdigital information that indicates a position of an unmanned aerialvehicle (UAV) of the UAS; obtaining second digital information thatidentifies a zone of a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM); determining whether anairspace violation has occurred by comparing the position of the UAVwith the zone of the NOTAM, based on the first digital information andthe second digital information; and controlling the UAS to warn a userof the UAS about the airspace violation occurring or potentiallyoccurring, or controlling the UAV to auto return or land, based on thedetermining.

According to an embodiment, the second digital information includes oneor more parameters that indicate at least one from among a locationcoordinate of the zone, a radius of the zone, an effective date of theNOTAM, a ceiling of the zone, a floor of the zone, and a status ofexemption of the UAV from a prohibition of the NOTAM.

According to an embodiment, the NOTAM is a Temporary Flight Restriction(TFR).

According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the second digitalinformation is in a JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) format.

According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the second digitalinformation has a dictionary data type.

According to an embodiment, the obtaining the second digital informationincludes obtaining, by the UAV, the second digital information via afirst wireless connection to a network that is external to the UAS, andthe determining whether the airspace violation has occurred is performedby at least one processor of the UAV.

According to an embodiment, the obtaining the second digital informationincludes obtaining, by a controller of the UAS, the second digitalinformation via a first wireless connection to a network that isexternal to the UAS, the controller includes at least one processor andis configured to control the UAV via a second wireless connection to theUAV, and the determining whether the airspace violation has occurred isperformed by the at least one processor of the controller of the UAS.

According to an embodiment, the UAS includes the UAV and a controllerconfigured to control the UAV via a first wireless connection, each ofthe UAV and the controller including at least one processor, theobtaining the second digital information includes obtaining, by one fromamong the UAV and the controller, the second digital information via asecond wireless connection to a network that is external to the UAS, andthe determining whether the airspace violation has occurred is performedby the at least one processor of the other from among the UAV and thecontroller.

According to an embodiment, the method further includes updating anaeronautical chart, that is stored in the UAS, with the second digitalinformation that is obtained.

According to an embodiment, the obtaining the second digital informationincludes obtaining the second digital information from a server, via awireless connection to a network that is external to the UAS.

According to one or more embodiments, an unmanned aerial system (UAS) isprovided. The UAS includes an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV); and acontroller configured to wirelessly communicate with the UAV and controlthe UAV, wherein at least one from among the UAV and the controllerincludes: at least one processor; and memory including computer code.The computer code is configured to, when executed by the at least oneprocessor, cause the at least one processor to: determine whether anairspace violation has occurred by comparing a position of the UAV witha zone of a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM), based on first digital informationand second digital information obtained by the at least one processor,and warn a user of the UAS about the airspace violation occurring orpotentially occurring, or controlling the UAV to auto return or land,based on the determination. The first digital information indicates theposition of the UAV, and the second digital information identifies thezone of the NOTAM.

According to an embodiment, the second digital information includes oneor more parameters that indicate at least one from among a locationcoordinate of the zone, a radius of the zone, an effective date of theNOTAM, a ceiling of the zone, a floor of the zone, and a status ofexemption of the UAV from a prohibition of the NOTAM.

According to an embodiment, the NOTAM is a Temporary Flight Restriction(TFR).

According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the second digitalinformation is in a JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) format.

According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the second digitalinformation has a dictionary data type.

According to an embodiment, the UAV is configured to obtain the seconddigital information via a wireless connection to a network that isexternal to the UAS, and the UAV includes the memory and the at leastone processor, and the UAV is configured to determine whether theairspace violation has occurred based on the first digital informationand the second digital information.

According to an embodiment, the controller is configured to obtain thesecond digital information via a first wireless connection to a networkthat is external to the UAS, and the controller includes the memory andthe at least one processor, and the controller is configured todetermine whether the airspace violation has occurred based on the firstdigital information and the second digital information.

According to an embodiment, one from among the UAV and the controller isconfigured to obtain the second digital information via a wirelessconnection to a network that is external to the UAS, and the other fromamong the UAV and the controller includes the memory and the at leastone processor and is configured to determine whether the airspaceviolation has occurred based on the first digital information and thesecond digital information.

According to an embodiment, the computer code is further configured to,when executed by the at least one processor, control the at least oneprocessor to update an aeronautical chart, that is stored in the UAS,with the second digital information that is obtained.

According to one or more embodiments, a non-transitory computer-readablemedium storing computer code is provided. The computer code isconfigured to, when executed by at least one processor of an unmannedaerial system (UAS), cause the at least one processor to: determinewhether an airspace violation has occurred by comparing a position of anunmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of the UAS with a zone of a Notice toAirmen (NOTAM), based on first digital information and second digitalinformation obtained by the at least one processor of the UAS; and warna user of the UAS about the airspace violation occurring or potentiallyoccurring, or control the UAV to auto return or land, based on thedetermination. The first digital information indicates the position ofthe UAV, and the second digital information identifies the zone of theNOTAM.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further features, the nature, and various advantages of the disclosedsubject matter will be more apparent from the following detaileddescription and the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of an unmanned aerial system (UAS).

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of a UAS that includes UAScommunication with a UAS service system.

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of a first chart.

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of a second chart.

FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of a system, including a UAS, inaccordance with an embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a schematic illustration of a system, including a UAS, inaccordance with an embodiment.

FIG. 7A is a schematic illustration of a RESTful position query inaccordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 7B is a schematic illustration of a JSON reply in accordance withan embodiment.

FIG. 8A illustrates a first portion of a parameter table.

FIG. 8B illustrates a second portion of the parameter table.

FIG. 9 is a schematic illustration of computer code of a UAS inaccordance with embodiments.

FIG. 10 is a schematic illustration of a computer system in accordancewith an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIG. 1, an unmanned aerial system (UAS) (100) can includean unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) (101) and a controller (102). Thecontroller (102) can use a data link (103) to communicate controlcommands from the controller (102) to the UAV (101). The controller(102) may include at least one communication circuit that is configuredto provide communication, that constitutes the data link (103), via veryhigh frequency (VHF), ultra-high frequency (UHF), or other wirelesstechnology that is analog or digital radio conveying. The controller(102) via the data link (103) may control power levels of the engines(114) of the UAV (101) or control surfaces of the UAV (101). Moreabstract commands like pitch, yaw, and roll, similar to those ofhelicopters or aircraft, can also be used. An experienced pilot canoperate some UAVs with those basic controls, not relying on any advancedonboard processing of control signals inside a UAV. UAVs have beenavailable in many forms, including as helicopters and aircraft.

Advances in onboard electronic designs more recently allow the offloadof certain tasks from the human operator to the UAV itself. Many UAVs,today, include sensor(s) (104) that indicate to an onboard controller(105) of the UAV (101) characteristics of the UAV (101) such as, forexample, the attitude and the acceleration of the UAV (101). The onboardcontroller (105) can be a computer system with a scaled-down ornon-existent user interface. The information obtained by the sensor(s)(104), in addition to the control inputs received from the data link(103) from the controller (102), may allow the UAV (101) to remainstable unless positive control input is obtained from the controller(102).

Even more recently, UAVs can include a receiver (106) configured toreceive communication from one of the Global Navigation SatelliteSystems (GNSS), such as the Global Positioning System (GPS) operated bythe United States. FIG. 1 illustrates a single satellite (108) thatprovides a signal (107) as such communication, to represent a GNSS.However, the receiver (106) of the UAV (101) may receive communicationfrom a GNSS that includes three or more, and typically four or more,line-of-sight satellites to triangulate the position of the UAV (101) inspace. The receiver (106), which may be a GNSS receiver, may determinewith fair accuracy the position of the UAV (101) in space and time. Insome UAVs, a GNSS can be augmented by additional sensors (such as anultrasonic or LIDAR sensor) of the UAV (101) on the vertical (Z-) axisto enable soft landings (not depicted). The UAV (101), according to someembodiments, may be configured to perform features such as “fly home”and “auto-land” based on GNSS capabilities, where the UAV (101) flies toa location that was defined as its home location. Such features may beperformed by the UAV (101) based upon a simple command from thecontroller (102) (like: the push of a single button) or in case of aloss of the data link (103) from the controller (102) or other timeoutof meaningful control input.

As another recent development, the UAV (101) may also include one ormore cameras (109). In some cases, the UAV (101) may include agimbal-mounted camera as one of the cameras (109) and can be used torecord pictures and video of a quality sufficient for the UAV'susers—today, often in High Definition TV resolution. In some cases, theUAV (101) may include other cameras (110), often covering some or allaxes of movement, and the UAV (101) may be configured to perform onboardsignal processing based on signals from the cameras (110) for collisionavoidance with both fixed and moving objects.

In some cases, the UAV (101) may include a “main” camera as one of thecameras (109) and its camera signal can be communicated by acommunication interface (e.g. communication circuit) of the UAV (101)via a data link (111) in real-time towards the human user, and displayedon a display device (112) included in, attached to, or separate from thecontroller (102). The data link (111) may be the same as or differentfrom the data link (103). Accordingly, UAVs may be successfully flownout of line-of-sight of a human pilot, using a technique known as “FirstPerson View” (FPV).

As a result of these and other technical developments, UAVs have becomeconsiderably easier to fly, which in turn has made them popular not onlywith professional UAV pilots and determined and affluent hobbyists, butalso the general public. As a result, millions of UAVs are now soldevery year compared to a few thousand—if that many—model helicopterssome 15 years ago. At the same time, the knowledge, proficiency, andengagement of the user community, on average, has decreased.

All but perhaps the smallest UAVs can present a hazard to mannedaviation, not only through mid-air collisions, but also due to pilotdistraction, saturation of Air Traffic Control (ATC) resources, and soon. The combination of potentially thousands of UAVs flyingsimultaneously during certain days, and (on average and when compared topilots of manned aircraft) the under skilled, undereducated, underinformed, and occasionally reckless UAV pilots, has led to millions ofdollars spent on aborted takeoffs, missed approaches, reroutes, groundedmanned aircraft, property damage through, for example, wildfires thatcould not be fought by manned aerial resources, and so forth. There havebeen reports of lives claimed by the effects of in-air collisionsbetween amateur-piloted UAVs and helicopters. For these and otherreasons, regulatory authorities including the United Nations'International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the United States'Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have started to regulate UAVs,including smaller UAVs weighing less than 55 pounds. Heavier UAVs havehistorically been regulated already.

In the US, one aspect of such regulation is the requirement for a pilotcarrying a “Remote Pilot Certificate” when conducting substantially allcommercial (for hire) UAV operations. The certificate is not primarilytargeted towards the mechanical aspects of flying a UAV, but rathertowards an understanding and the observance of regulations including,for example, airspace, flight restrictions, and so forth. While acommercial remote pilot may, through obtaining the certificate, be awareof his/her obligations with respect, among other things, observance ofrules and regulations of UAV operations, including airspace, a hobbyistmay not be sufficiently aware. UASs have become so cheap and easy tooperate that the historical way of achieving competency through modelaircraft clubs and similar organizations does not reliably work anymoreeither. For example, a substantial number of UAVs are operated away fromthe flying fields that model aircraft clubs maintain, by individuals whowere never a member of such a club and likely have never studiedpertaining regulations, let alone got a briefing regarding the currentlayout of the airspace.

Another aspect that is proposed for regulation includes theidentification of UAVs and their flights to ATC, other UAVs, and soforth. In the US, a “proposed rule” (Document No. 2019-28100) has beenpublished on Dec. 31, 2019, by the FAA, which is entitled “RemoteIdentification of Unmanned Aircraft Systems”. The proposed rule, whenimplemented by substantially all UASs, will give the ATC a certaininsight into UAV activity at any given moment in time. The proposed rulefurther requires the UAS to be equipped to inform the pilot if thereporting mechanism between the UAS and the systems interfacing with theATC, known as UAV Service Suppliers (USS), is inactive while the UAV isairborne. However, contrary to many operations of manned aircraft incontrolled airspace that require the flight crew to be in (voice)contact with the ATC, squawk transponder codes, and so forth, no suchrequirement is envisioned in the proposed rule, nor would it likely bepractical without a substantial increase in ATC resources. Insofar,while the FAA through USSs may be able to obtain a certain amount ofreal-time knowledge of active UAV operations, the “proposed rule” doesnot envision direct (through technical means) or indirect (throughcommunication with the pilot) influence of the UAV's flight by an ATC.Instead, the proposed rule targets informing the ATC about UAVoperations pertaining to the ATC's mission.

Referring to FIG. 2, a UAS (200) may include a UAV (201) and acontroller (202). The UAV (201) and the controller (202) may be the sameor similar to the UAV (101) and the controller (102) illustrated in FIG.1, respectively. According to an embodiment, the UAS (200), potentiallyoperated by a human pilot (203), may be configured to inform one or moreUSSs (204) about the position of the UAV (201) in real-time inaccordance with the “proposed rule”. The reporting can be conductedusing the Internet (205). For all but the most exotic use casesinvolving tethered UAVs, this may imply that one or both of the UAV(201) and the controller (202) of the UAS (200) may configured to have aconnection (206) over a wireless network such as a network (207) (e.g.5G Network) to the Internet (205), and the USS (204) also may have aconnection (208) to the Internet (205). Such a scenario may be assumedfor the proposed rule, and may be assumed herein as well, butembodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto. Networksother than the Internet (205) may also be used. For example,conceivably, a closed wireless network that is not the Internet could beused to communicate between the UAS (200) and the USS (204). Closedwireless networks may be used for certain military UAVs. When referringto the “Internet” henceforth, such networks are meant to be included.

Many physical wireless network technologies may be deployed in uses thatenable connections (206) (e.g. wireless connections) and networks (207)(e.g. wireless networks) to connect systems such as the controller (202)or the UAV (201) of the UAS (200) to the Internet (205). For outdoorapplications, mobile networks may be used such as, for example, 5thGeneration or “5G” networks. Henceforth, the use of such a 5G networkmay be assumed but embodiments of the present disclosure are not limitedthereto. Other physical network technologies can equally be employed,including for example, 3G, 3.5G, 4G, LTE mobile networks, wireless LANin infrastructure or ad hoc mode, zig-bee, and so on. In embodiments ofthe present disclosure, a mobile network carrying the Internet can offerbi-directional communication, such as, for example, between the UAS(200) and the USS (204). The quality of service in each direction maydiffer however. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, theUAV (201), the controller (202), and/or the USS (204) may includecommunication interfaces (including for example, a transmitter and/or areceiver) and at least one processor with memory that implements one ormore of the physical wireless network technologies, so as to beconfigured to communicate via one or more of the network types of thepresent disclosure.

With reference to FIG. 2, the connections (206) between the Internet(205) through a network (207) (e.g. a 5G network) to the UAV (201)and/or the controller (202) can be bi-directional. When using Internetprotocols such as Internet Protocol (IP), Transmission Control Protocol(TCP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP),Quick UDP Internet Connections (QUIC), and similar, for thecommunication between the UAS (200) and the USS (204) (as may beenvisioned by the proposed rule), then by the nature of such protocols,a bi-directional link may be required for those protocols to work.Further, the proposed rule includes a requirement that the human pilot(203) be informed, presumably by the controller (202) or the UAV (201)itself of the case of communication loss between the UAS (200) and theUSS (204), which may be achieved through a data link between the USS(204) and the UAS (200)—which in turn may require bi-directionalcommunication. Accordingly, the connections 206 may be bi-directionalfor such reasons.

Air traffic control (ATC) authorities such as the FAA, or government orprivate authorities or entities tasked by the ATC authorities, havepreviously issued not only regulations but also various forms ofgraphic, textual, or verbal information regarding the layout of theairspace in which (manned and unmanned) aircraft operate. Historically,at various times available in the form of printed charts, weeklypublications, and textual information (e.g. available through fax, overthe telephone, or in person by a flight service specialist), relevantinformation is now, in most countries including the US, available overthe Internet, albeit from various sources. As an example, such relevantinformation may include the following:

(A) Charts: many different types of aeronautical charts are available indifferent countries and for different purposes (e.g. low/high altitude,visual/instrument flight rules, planning, etc.). For the operation ofsmall UAVs, of particular relevance are the US sectional charts, as wellas the “Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability” (LAANC)information, which may be displayed in the form of a chart on a webbrowser. Charts may be updated on a comparatively long-term cycle (forexample; VFR sectional charts: every six months). For manned aircraft,the use of an “in force” chart may be required. Referring to FIG. 3, anexcerpt of a sectional chart (300) centered on Livermore Airport inCalifornia (301) is illustrated. It should be noted that sectionalcharts are colored, and the color carries significance. However, theblack-and-white representation of the sectional chart (300) issufficient to show the difficulties that a recreational UAV pilot mayhave in interpreting sectional charts. The dashed circle (approximately8 miles in diameter) around the airport indicates an airspace (302),which is a “Class D” airspace at certain times (when the toward ofLivermore airport is open), which can imply that no (manned) aircraftoperation is allowed inside this circle and up to a certain altitudewithout prior approval by ATC. Historically, the same rule applied toUAVs, which resulted in the flights of UAVs in most parts of theLivermore township (to the east/right of Livermore airport) andsurrounding areas being illegal.

Recognizing the requirements for manned aircraft operations were perhapsoverly restrictive for recreational drones, the FAA has recently allowedflying recreational drones in certain parts of controlled airspace. Withreference to FIG. 4, a portion of a chart (400) is illustrated, which isan example of a “UAV chart” issued from the FAA electronically over theInternet, and displayed in a web browser. Again, colors in such chartsmay be significant, but the black/white representation is sufficient toshow aspects of the chart (400) for purposes of the present disclosure.As illustrated in FIG. 4, similar to FIG. 3, an 8 mile circle isprovided around Livermore airport, which indicates an airspace (404). Inthe original version of the chart (400), the circle is depicted in blue.Areas covered by the circle (indicative of controlled airspace), arecovered by blocks (405) that are rectangular. Each such block (405) maybe around one square mile in size. Each block (405) may contain anidentifier (e.g. a number) which is indicative of the maximum allowedaltitude a UAV is allowed to fly within the block (405) without priorpermission. Mechanisms (in the form of apps) may be in place that allowcertain UAV operators to obtain permission to fly higher than a ceilingof a block that is indicated by the identifier.

(B) Notice to Airmen (NOTAM): these textual notices may have aninternationally recognized standardized format and may be written inplain English. The textual notices can be issued quickly—within minutesor hours—unlike charts that may have update cycles measured in weeks andmonths, but their valid time can be varying from hours to “indefinitely”or “until further notice”. One of many purposes of NOTAMs can be toupdate certain aspects of charts. For example, aeronautical charts caninclude information about navigation obstacles such as high towers. Whena temporary crane gets erected that is higher than a certain threshold(which is determined, among other factors, by the closeness of the siteto the approach path of existing airports), it may constitute anavigation hazard and, as such, its existence, location, height, andanticipated duration of existence may be made available in the form ofNOTAMs. An example of a NOTAM that indicates the presence of a crane inthe vicinity of an airport (San Carlos, KSQL) may look as follows:

-   -   KSQL SAN CARLOS    -   !SQL 10/003 SQL OBST CRANE (ASN 2018-AWP-13591-OE)        372917N1221327 W (1.9NM SE SQL) 309FT (300FT AGL) FLAGGED AND        LGTD 1910072355-2001312159    -   CREATED: 7 Oct. 2019 23:55:00    -   SOURCE: SQL

(C) Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs): A TFR is a type of a NOTAMthat can inform a pilot or crew of an airspace where special ATCpermission may be required to enter. TFRs can be announced well inadvance (for example, to cover areas above long-planned sports events),or issued in real time (for example, in case of wildfires). Shown belowis an example of a TFR that could be related to a fire or similarhazard; the TFR may only be valid for a single hour:

-   -   FDC 9/1767 ZMP MN.AIRSPACE HIBBING, MN.TEMPORARY FLIGHT        RESTRICTIONS WI AN AREA DEFINED AS 2 NM RADIUS OF 472601N0930200        W (HIBBING VOR/DME HIB299015.6) SFC-4500FT BLASTING. PURSUANT TO        14 CFR SECTION 91.137(A)(1) TEMPORARY FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS ARE IN        EFFECT. ONLY RELIEF ACFT OPS UNDER DIRECTION OF HIBBING TACONITE        ARE AUTH IN THE AIRSPACE. HIBBING TACONITE TELEPHONE        218-262-5940 IS IN CHARGE OF ON SCENE EMERG RESPONSE ACT.        MINNEAPOLIS/ZMP/ARTCC TELEPHONE 651-463-5580 IS THE FAA CDN        FACILITY. 2001031630-2001031730

In the US and in many other countries, all the above information can beobtained in digital format. In the US, such access can be free ofcharge. The data format of the above information may be standardized,published, and quite compact. All aforementioned US data pertaining to agiven day may fit into 16 GB.

The FAA is transitioning the National Airspace System (NAS) toPerformance Based Navigation (PBN), which primary uses satellitenavigation in the form of the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS).GPS (Global Positioning System) is one the systems of GNSS, which is asystem used for worldwide navigation and surveying. The GPS system maymake use of the geographical latitude and longitude lines to providecoordinates for a person's location or a place of interest. Lines oflatitude are horizontal lines that stretch from east to west across theglobe. The longest and main line of latitude is called the Equator. TheEquator is represented as 0° latitude. Lines of longitude are verticallines that stretch from the North Pole to the South Pole. The main lineof longitude is called the Prime Meridian. The Prime Meridian isrepresented as 0° longitude. Most locations on the Earth do not fallalong the lines of latitude or longitude, but within the shapes createdfrom the intersection of the horizontal and vertical lines.

In order to accurately pinpoint a human being on the Earth's surface,the lines of latitude and longitude are further divided and expressed inat least one of the three common formats: Degrees, minutes, and seconds(DMS). The common way to represent a GPS coordinate may be in the formatof a pair of Latitude (N/S) and Longitude (E/W). N(orth)/S(outh) may beplaced at the end of each DMS to represent if it is either on the Northor South of the Equator. E(ast)/W(est) may be placed at the end of eachDMS to represent if it is either on the left of the Prime Meridian orright of the Prime Meridian. The space between each line of latitude orlongitude, representing 1°, is divided into 60 minutes, and each minuteis divided into 60 seconds. An example of a GPS coordinate may look likethe following: (25° 24′10.1″N, 20° 15′16.5″E).

As described above, interpreting airspace using traditional meansdesigned for manned aircraft is difficult and requires a certain amountof training. While the FAA increasingly makes available simplifiedcharts (like the chart 400), apps, and other tools designed fornon-professionals, such tools continue to be difficult to operate, andperhaps more importantly, require the UAV pilot to actually consult thembefore flying his/her UAV. The many recent incidents related to UAVs incontrolled airspace clearly indicate that not all UAV pilots do so.

Further, especially with relatively small UAVs, it can be hard for anuntrained (or even trained) UAV pilot to gauge the altitude that his/herUAV is flying. For example, it previously has been difficult for a UAVpilot to know that his/her small UAV is 90 ft. in altitude (which may belegal in certain areas as indicated by a UAV chart) or 110 ft. (whichmay be illegal). Technical systems may be needed to be built into a UAV(e.g. UAV (201)) or a controller (e.g. controller (202)) to help solvesuch problems.

Referring to FIGS. 5-6, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, asystem may be provided. The system may include a UAV (501) and acontroller (502), that together constitute a UAS (500). The UAV (501)and the controller (502) may include any number of the hardware (e.g.cameras and communication interfaces) and software components describedwith respect to the UAS (100) and the UAS (200) illustrated in FIGS.1-2, and may be configured to perform the functions described withrespect to the UAS (100) and the UAS (200). According to embodiments,with reference to FIG. 5, the UAV (501) may include a computer system(520) that includes at least one processor and memory storing computercode, wherein the computer code is configured to cause the UAV (501) toperform its functions when executed by the at least one processor of theUAV (501). The computer system (520) may be implemented by any number ofthe components of computer system (900) described later below withreference to FIG. 10, and may exclude most user interface componentsillustrated in FIG. 10. The computer system (520) may be an embeddedsystem and may advantageously (for space and weight reasons) be part of,or integrated into, the onboard flight control circuitry of the UAV(501). The computer system (520) may have a mechanism to obtain itslocation in three-dimensional space. For example, the computer system(520) may include a GPS antenna (523) that, together with a GPSreceiver, may be one example of such mechanisms. The computer system(520) may include other mechanisms such as, for example, a combinationof GPS with (potentially more accurate) barometric altitude sensors, atriangulation mechanism to determine a lateral position fromground-based navigation tools (omnidirectional range navigation systems(VORs), cell phone towers, etc.), and so forth. The UAV (501) may alsoinclude memory storage (524) accessible by the user (509) of the UAV(501). For example, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the memory storage (524)may be a micro-SD card. However, the memory storage (524) could also beanother changeable semiconductor storage, onboard NV-RAM in the UAV(501) that is accessible through a network plug from a computer orwireless LAN, and so forth.

The controller (502) may also include a computer system that includes atleast one processor and memory storing computer code, wherein thecomputer code is configured to cause the controller (502) to perform itsfunctions when executed by the at least one processor of the controller(502). The computer system of the controller (502) may be implemented byany number of the components of computer system (900) described laterbelow with reference to FIG. 10. With reference to FIG. 6, thecontroller (502) may include a memory storage (534) accessible by theuser (509) of the controller (502). The memory storage (534) may have asame or similar configuration as the memory storage (524). According toembodiments, one, none, or both of the memory storage (524) and thememory storage (534) may be included in the UAS (500).

The memory storage (524) and/or the memory storage (534) may have atleast a sufficient size to store information pertaining to theairspace(s) the UAV may operate in. Such information may include digitalrepresentations of charts, NOTAMs, TFRs and so forth. The digitalinformation may be interpreted by the computer system (520) of the UAV(501) and/or the computer system of the controller (502), and may becompared (e.g. correlated) with the position of the UAV (501) in threedimensions (including lateral position and altitude). The computersystem (520) of the UAV (501) and/or the computer system of thecontroller (502) may determine, as a result of the comparison (e.g.correlation) process, that the UAV (501) is “legal to fly” or “not legalto fly” in the airspace that the UAV (501) currently occupies.Alternatively or additionally, the computer system (520) of the UAV(501) and/or the computer system of the controller (502) may determineother results such as “legal to fly but approaching the legal airspaceboundary”, “legal to fly but will be illegal within 10 seconds if courseis not altered”, and so forth. The memory storage (524) and/or thememory storage (534) may be loaded with digital information pertainingto the airspace(s) the UAV (501) is anticipated to fly in.

The UAS (500) may obtain the digital information (or additional digitalinformation that may update the digital information) pertaining to theairspace(s), during power-up, pre-flight, or flight, of the UAV (501),by one or more from among the wireless connection (541) and the wirelessconnection (542). For example, with reference to FIG. 5, the UAV (501)of the UAS (500) may be configured to have a wireless connection (541)over a wireless network such as a network (507) (e.g. a 5G Network) tothe Internet (505), and the USS (504) may have a connection to theInternet (505). Alternatively or additionally, with reference to FIG. 6,the controller (502) of the UAS may be configured to have a wirelessconnection (542) over a wireless network such as the network (507) (e.g.a 5G Network) to the Internet (505), and the USS (504) may have aconnection to the Internet (505). Accordingly, the UAV (501) and/or thecontroller (502) of the UAS (500) may be configured to communicate withthe USS (504) and/or similar servers operated by relevant authoritiesover airspace, or designated thereof, via the Internet (505). Via thewireless connection (541) and/or the wireless connection (542), the UAS(500) may query the USS (504) and/or the similar servers, and receivethe digital information (or additional digital information) pertainingto the airspace(s) from the USS (504) or the similar servers.

For example, according to embodiments, the UAV (501) and/or thecontroller (502) may query the USS (408) (and/or the similar servers)for one or more of the following, which the UAV (401) and/or thecontroller (502) may then obtain and store in the memory storage (524)and/or the memory storage (534):

(A) Charts: In a case that the UAV (501) or the controller (502)determines that onboard charts in the memory storage (524) and/or thememory storage (534) for a relevant area(s) are not current (e.g.aeronautical charts may carry an expiration date); the UAS (500) mayquery for and obtain charts pertaining to a particular area that isidentified by the UAS (500). For example, the particular area may be ageographical location (e.g. a location of the UAS (401)) that isobtained by the UAS (500) from the GPS antenna (523), or othergeo-reference data, including a reasonable radius around the UAV's (501)current location wherein the reasonable radius may be calculated by theUAV (501) or the controller (502) based on the endurance (e.g. maximumflight time) of the UAV (501), a maximum speed of the UAV (501), and asafety factor to accommodate for wind and other environmental factors.

(B) NOTAMs: The UAS (500) may query for and obtain NOTAMs pertaining toa particular area that is identified by the UAS (500), wherein theparticular area may be the same or similar as the particular areasdescribed above.

(C) TFRs: The UAS (500) may query for and obtain TFRs pertaining to aparticular area that is identified by the UAS (500), wherein theparticular area may be the same or similar as the particular areadescribed above.

(D) Other Information: The UAS (500) may query for and obtain otherinformation relevant for the flight of the UAV (e.g. pertaining to theparticular area that is identified by the UAS (500)). For example, theother information may include weather data, including, for example, winddata. According to embodiments, the weather data may be used by the UAS(500) to determine the safety factor for calculating the reasonableradius around the UAV's (501) current location.

Information received using the aforementioned mechanisms can beintegrated with the onboard information in the memory storage (524)and/or the memory storage (534) and used as described further below.

Details of protocols used for the communication between the UAS (500)(e.g. the UAV (501) or the controller (502)) and the USS (504), or otherservers, may depend on the services offered by the USS (504) or theother servers. Historically, NOTAMs (e.g. TFRs), as an example, wereavailable in files covering geographic areas of air traffic controlcenters (several US states in size). According to embodiments of thepresent disclosure, the UAS (500) (e.g. the UAV (501) or the controller(502)) may (a) request the file corresponding to the state the UAV (501)is operating in (e.g. as identified by the UAS (500) based on GPSlocation and an onboard chart), (b) download the pertinent textual NOTAMfile (which can be a few ten or perhaps 100 Kbyte in size) usingprotocols such as FTP, or HTTP, (c) parse the file for relevantinformation, and (e) integrate the relevant information identified withonboard chart information in the memory storage (524) and/or the memorystorage (534). Such a process may occur at least once before the flight,but also several times during the flight, for example in 1-minute or5-minute intervals. Such process may be practical due to thecomparatively small file size. Other access mechanisms of the presentdisclosure, described below, may be even more efficient.

More recently, airspace authorities including the FAA have implementedmodern query interfaces that allow automated download of informationpertinent to a specific location with a granularity much finer than astate. These interfaces can be based on RESTful operations.Representational State Transfer (REST), is a technique in which a clientcan query a server identified by a base Unified Resource Indicator (URI)through standard HTTP methods (including, for example, GET, POST, PUT,PATCH, or DELETE) in a defined format. One such defined standardizedformat is known as Java Object Notation (JSON).

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, with reference toFIGS. 7A-B, the UAS (500) (e.g. the UAV (501) or the controller (502))may provide a RESTful query (601) to an FAA-designed USS server (e.g.USS 504) pertaining to a UAV chart, and may, in response, receive aJSON-coded response (602) of the server. For example, as shown in FIG.7B, the JSON-coded response (602) indicates information such as a“ceiling” (603) in units of feet (604). The “ceiling” (603) may be amaximum allowed altitude for the UAV (501). The JSON-coded response(602) may also indicate information such as the effective date (605) ofthe UAV chart and the last edit date (606) of the UAV chart (from whichthe expiration date of the UAV chart can be derived by the UAS (500)),and the location (607) and shape (608) of the spatial area to which theceiling (603) applies.

Queries by the UAS (500) for NOTAMs (e.g. TFRs), and/or other real-timeupdated information can have similar formats.

Due to the comparatively small size of both query messages and replies(e.g. as shown in the example of FIGS. 7A-B), and the comparatively lowcomputational requirements for processing such messages when compared toparsing text files of many Kbyte in size, such a query mechanism can bemore suitable for a UAV compared to full file download and parsing.There are also arguably no privacy concerns because, according to theproposed rule, a UAV needs to inform a USS about its position anyway.

With reference to FIG. 5, the computer system (520) of the UAV (501) mayinclude a communication interface that includes, for example, one ormore communicators such as a communicator (525), which may include, forexample, a 5G antenna. The communicator (525) may be configured to senddata to and receive data (e.g. the information pertaining to theairspace(s)) from the Internet (505) by using the network (507). Thecommunicator (525), or another communicator of the communicationinterface of the UAV (501), may be configured to send data (e.g. sensordata, video data, the information pertaining to the airspace(s)) to andreceive data (e.g. command data) from the controller (502) via awireless connection (510). The controller (502) may also have acommunication interface with a communicator that is configured to senddata (e.g. commands) to and receive data (e.g. sensor data, video data,the information pertaining to the airspace(s)) from the UAV (501) viathe wireless connection (510). With reference to FIG. 6, a communicator(515) of the controller (502), or another communicator of thecommunication interface of the controller (502), may be configured tosend data to and receive data (e.g. the information pertaining to theairspace(s)) from the Internet (505) by using the network (507). Eachcommunicator of the present disclosure may include, for example, atransmitter and a receiver.

According to embodiments, the UAS (500) may be configured to receive thedigital information pertaining to the airspace(s). According toembodiments, the UAS (500) may be configured to communicate the digitalinformation pertaining to the airspace(s) between the UAV (501) and thecontroller (502). According to embodiments, the UAV (501) and/or thecontroller (502) may be configured to make determinations (e.g. illegalflight) based on the digital information pertaining to the airspace(s).According to embodiments, the UAV (501) and/or the controller (502) maybe configured to cause the UAV (501) and/or the controller (502) to warnthe user (509) about the determinations, and/or cause the UAV (501) toperform actions (e.g. automatic return or land) based on thedeterminations. Examples of warning the user (509) of a determination isprovided below.

Referring again to FIGS. 5-6, after having obtained updates to the chartinformation stored in the memory storage (524) and/or the memory storage(534) in accordance with any of the above described mechanisms or anyother suitable mechanisms of embodiments of the present disclosure, theUAS (500) may communicate the result of the comparison (e.g.correlation) process, based on the updated chart information, to theuser (509). While flying the UAV (501), the user (509) may not beparticularly interested in the details that were obtained. Instead, theuser (509) may be mostly interested in an indication of the event thatthe UAV's (501) flight is, or has become, illegal.

According to embodiments, with reference to FIG. 5, the UAS (500) mayinform the user (509) by using the wireless connection (510) between theUAV (501) and the controller (502) to communicate a signal codifying theresult of the comparison (e.g. correlation), and inform the user (509)through, for example, vibration of the controller (502), a visual signalsuch as a warning, or a message on the display (512) that may be a partof (or attached to) the controller (502). Presumably, the wirelessconnection (510) is available as it may be required under the proposedFAA rule. If, however, no such wireless connection is available for anyreason, the UAV (501) may alternatively or additionally include onboardmechanisms that allow it to inform the user (509) of the result of thecomparison (e.g. correlation) process. For example, the UAV (501) mayinclude ground-visible warning lights. As another example, the UAV (501)may “bob” (rapid oscillating vertical motion).

Referring to FIG. 6, embodiments of the present disclosure may includean alternative or additional implementation which shifts some of thecomputational burden from the UAV (501) to the controller (502). Forexample, the controller (502), in this case, may have access to thememory storage (534) that includes (potentially updated) chart data, andmay perform the aforementioned comparison (e.g. correlation) based onposition information (obtained by the GPS antenna (523)) sent by the UAV(501) over the wireless connection (510). The chart data may be updatedusing any suitable mechanisms including the ones described above,through the communicator (515) (e.g. a 5G interface), the network (507)(e.g. a 5G network), and the Internet (505), to the USS (504). Theresult of the comparison (e.g. legal or not legal to fly) may becomeavailable locally at the controller (502), and may be communicated bythe controller (502) to the user (509) by, for example, a visual signal(e.g. via a light), a message on the display (512), a vibration alert,or other suitable mechanisms. As the controller (502) controls the UAV(501), the result may also be made visible by the UAV (501) itself, forexample by a light attached to the UAV (501) or by the UAV “bobbing”.Indicating the result of the determination by the UAV (501) may bebeneficial because the user (509) may be concentrated on the UAV (501)itself rather than the user interface of the controller (502).

As mentioned above, RESTful operations for retrieving NOTAM/TFRs datamay be implemented. The returned data of the RESTful operations may bein a standardized format such as JSON.

Not all returned data may be important to a UAV (501) to operate near aTFR zone. The parameters listed in the table (700), illustrated in FIGS.8A-B, may indicate examples of digital information that may be useful tothe UAS (500), and obtained by the UAS (500) via the data communicationmechanisms described with respect to embodiments of present disclosure.

With reference to FIGS. 8A-B, the term “Mandatory” means conditionallymandatory. That is, if the relevant information is available, it must beincluded. But if it is not available, it will not be included. Thedesignations of “Mandatory” and “Optional” in table (700) are inaccordance with one non-limiting example embodiment of the presentdisclosure, and embodiments of the present disclosure may includevarious designations for each type of information. For example, anynumber of the properties designated as “Mandatory” in table (700) may bedesignated as “Optional”, and any number of the properties designated as“Optional” in table (700) may be designated as “Mandatory.” The datatypes, units, and precisions of the information listed in table (700)are also non-limiting examples, and the parameters may also be providedin other data types, and have different units and precisions.

With reference to table (700), NOTAM (e.g. TFR) information obtained bythe UAS (500) may include properties such as, for example, “location”,“radius”, “ceiling”, “datetime”, “floor”, “exempt”, and “ceiling andfloor geometry rings”.

“Location” may be information that describes a GPS location of a NOTAM(e.g. TFR) zone, and may be set to be “Mandatory.” The “location” may bea useful parameter for the UAV (501) to identify the NOTAM (e.g. TFR)zone. “Radius” may be information that describes a radius of a NOTAM(e.g. TFR) zone, and may be set to be “Mandatory”. “Ceiling” may beinformation that describes a ceiling of a NOTAM (e.g. TFR) zone, and maybe set to be “Mandatory”. “Datetime” may be information that describesan effective date of the NOTAM (e.g. TFR), and may be set to mandatory.The “datetime” may be a useful parameter for the UAV (501) to identify arestriction timing of a NOTAM (e.g. TFR). “Floor” may be informationthat describes a floor of a NOTAM (e.g. TFR) zone. and may be set to be“Mandatory”. “Exempt” may be information (e.g. Boolean information) thatindicates whether the UAV (501) is exempt from the NOTAM (e.g. TFR). Forexample, there may be times where special operations can be conducted ina NOTAM (e.g. TFR) zone such as for a critical mission in which acamera-equipped drone for video capture of a disaster situation such aswildfire may be required. The “exempt” parameter may enable the UAS(500) to indicate to the user (509) whether the UAV (501) is legal tofly in such zones. T(rue) may represent that it is legal for the UAV(501) to fly through a TFR, and F(alse) may represent that it is illegalfor the UAV (501) to fly through the TFR. “Ceiling and floor geometryrings” may be geometry data for each ceiling and floor ring of a NOTAM(e.g. TFR) zone, and may be set to “Optional”.

The properties “radius”, “ceiling”, “floor”, and “ceiling and floorgeometry rings” may each use a dictionary data type. All parameterswhich use the dictionary data type may take the key value for the samepurpose. For example, for “radius” of a NOTAM (e.g. TFR) zone, if thereis only one radius defined, the {key, value} pair data may be {“0”:radius}. Then, {“0”: ceiling} may represent the ceiling of the radiusthat is associated with the key value of “0”. Similar relationships mayalso be provided for the “floor” and “ceiling and floor geometry rings”data.

According to embodiments, geometry properties (e.g. “ceiling and floorgeometry rings”) may be set up to be “Optional” and the “radius” may beused alone to represent the NOTAM (e.g. TFR) coverage.

In cases in which NOTAM/TFR zones do not have a regular ring boundary orhave multiple ring boundary associated to it, a dictionary data type maybe used for each of the parameters for “radius”, “ceiling”, and “floor”.According to embodiments, the following geometry JSON format may be usedto represent each boundary:

 ″geometry″: { ″0” :{ ″rings″: [ [ [ D°M′S″ N/S, D°M′ S′ W/E ],[ D°M′S″N/S,  D°M′S″ N/S, ], ... ]  }  “1” : {  ″rings″: [ [ [ D°M′S″ N/S, D°M′S′ W/E ],[ D°M′S″ N/S,  D°M′S″ N/S, ], ... ] } }

The keys “0” and “1”, shown above, may represent a key value of arespective ring boundary, which also points to the same key in theinformation for “radius”, “ceiling”, and “floor”. As shown above, eachof the keys “0” and “1” may be associated with a respective array of GPScoordinates in a DMS format, the GPS coordinates indicating informationof a boundary of a ring.

The UAS (500) may obtain the above described aeronautical informationfrom a USS/UTM and follow through a proper operation accordingly.

The UAS (500) may obtain the aforementioned information (e.g.information indicated in table (700)) from a USS/UTM (e.g. USS 504) anduse the information in at least one of the following ways:

(1) During startup, the UAS (500) may query a server, for example aserver co-operated with the USS (504), a LAANC server, or similarservers, to compare (e.g. correlate) with its own known position andwhether it is legal to fly (and up to what altitude it is legal to flyin the anticipated visual range around its current location). The visualrange may be determined by heuristics, involving, for example, the sizeof the UAV—a one-foot drone is hardly visible when more than a fewhundred feet away. If it were illegal to fly at the current location,the UAS (500) may inform the pilot of such a situation. The UAS (500)may also inform the pilot about the maximum height that it is legal tofly (which may be particularly relevant in multi-ringed environments).

(2) In flight, the UAS (500) may correlate the position informationobtained by an onboard GPS of the UAV (501). If the UAS (500) determinesthat the UAV (501) has entered illegal airspace, it may take correctiveaction, for example informing the pilot, auto-return, and/or auto-land.

UASs of the present disclosure may comprise at least one processor andmemory storing computer code. The computer code, when executed by the atleast one processor, may be configured to cause the at least oneprocessor to perform the functions of the embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

For example, with reference to FIG. 9, the UAS (500) of the presentdisclosure may comprise at least one processor and memory storingcomputer code. Any number of the at least processor and the memory maybe provided in one or both of the UAV (501) and the controller (502),such that functions of the present disclosure may be performed by asingle one from among the UAV (501) and the controller (502), both ofthe UAV (501) and the controller (502), or divided between the UAV (501)and the controller (502). The computer code may comprise first obtainingcode (802), second obtaining code (804), determining code (806), andcontrolling code (808).

The first obtaining code (802) may be configured to cause the at leastone processor to obtain first digital information that indicates aposition of the UAV (501) of the UAS (500). According to an embodiment,the first digital information may include a GPS coordinate of the UAV(501). According to an embodiment, the first digital information may beobtained via GPS.

The second obtaining code (804) may be configured to cause the at leastone processor to obtain second digital information that identifies azone (e.g. a TFR zone) of a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM). According to anembodiment, at least a portion of the second digital information may bein a JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) format. According to anembodiment, at least a portion of the second digital information mayhave a dictionary data type. According to an embodiment, the seconddigital information may be obtained via a wireless connection to anetwork that is external to the UAS (500). According to an embodiment,the second digital information may include the digital informationdescribed above with reference to table (700) that is illustrated inFIGS. 8A-B. According to an embodiment, the UAS (500) may updateinformation (e.g. an aeronautical chart) stored in the memory with thesecond digital information obtained, and the updated information may beutilized in the determinations provided by the determining code (806).

The determining code (806) may be configured to cause the at least oneprocessor to determine whether the UAV (501) has caused an airspaceviolation by comparing (e.g. correlating) the position of the UAV (501)with a position of the zone of the NOTAM, based on the first digitalinformation and the second digital information. In a case where one fromamong the UAV (501) and the controller (502) obtains the first and/orsecond digital information via a network outside the UAS (500), and theother from among the UAV (501) and the controller (502) is configured toperform the determination, the one from among the UAV (501) and thecontroller (502) may communicate the first and/or second digitalinformation to the other via the wireless connection (510) from amongthe UAV (501) and the controller (502) so that the other from among theUAV (501) and the controller (502) may perform the determination.

The controlling code (808) may be configured to cause the at least oneprocessor to control the UAS (500) to warn the user (509) of the UAS(500) about the airspace violation occurring or potentially occurring,or control the UAV (501) to auto return or land, based on thedetermination performed with the determining code (807). For example,according to an embodiment, the controller (502) may inform the user(509) of a result of the comparison (e.g. occurrence or potentialoccurrence of the airspace violation) through, for example, causing thecontroller (502) to vibrate by a haptic feedback device (e.g. a motor oractuator) of the controller (502), or visually signal via a warninglight of the controller (502) or by displaying a message on a display(e.g. display (512)) of the controller (502). Alternatively oradditionally, the UAV (501) can include onboard mechanisms that allow itto inform the user (509) of the result of the comparison (e.g.correlation) process. For example, at least one processor of the UAV(501) may control ground-visible warning lights of the UAV (501) tosignal the result. As another example, the at least one processor of theUAV (501) may control the UAV (501) to “bob” (rapid oscillating verticalmotion). According to embodiments, when one from among the UAV (501) andthe controller (502) locally performs the comparison (e.g. correlation)process, the one from among the UAV (501) and the controller (502) mayalso signal the result (e.g. occurrence or possible occurrence of theairspace violation) of the comparison to the user (509). Alternativelyor additionally, the one from among the UAV (501) and the controller(502) may communicate, via the wireless connection (510), a signalcodifying the result of the comparison to the other from among the UAV(501) and the controller (502), and the at least one processor of theother from among the UAV (501) and the controller (502) may control theother from among the UAV (501) and the controller (502) to signal theresult of the comparison to the user (509).

The embodiments of the present disclosure, described above, can beimplemented in both a controller and a UAV as computer software usingcomputer-readable instructions and physically stored in one or morecomputer-readable media. For example, FIG. 10 shows a computer system(900) suitable for implementing certain embodiments of the disclosedsubject matter.

The computer software can be coded using any suitable machine code orcomputer language, that may be subject to assembly, compilation,linking, or like mechanisms to create code including instructions thatcan be executed directly, or through interpretation, micro-codeexecution, and the like, by computer central processing units (CPUs),Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), and the like.

The instructions can be executed on various types of computers orcomponents thereof, including, for example, personal computers, tabletcomputers, servers, smartphones, gaming devices, internet of thingsdevices, and the like.

The components shown in FIG. 10 for computer system (900) are exemplaryin nature and are not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scopeof use or functionality of the computer software implementingembodiments of the present disclosure. Neither should the configurationof components be interpreted as having any dependency or requirementrelating to any one or combination of components illustrated in theexemplary embodiment of a computer system (900).

Computer system (900) may include certain human interface input devices.Such a human interface input device may be responsive to input by one ormore human users through, for example, tactile input (such as:keystrokes, swipes, data glove movements), audio input (such as: voice,clapping), visual input (such as: gestures), olfactory input (notdepicted). The human interface devices can also be used to capturecertain media not necessarily directly related to conscious input by ahuman, such as audio (such as: speech, music, ambient sound), images(such as: scanned images, photographic images obtain from a still imagecamera), video (such as two-dimensional video, three-dimensional videoincluding stereoscopic video).

Input human interface devices may include one or more of (only one ofeach depicted): keyboard (901), mouse (902), trackpad (903),touch-screen (910), joystick (905), microphone (906), scanner (907), andcamera (908).

Computer system (900) may also include certain human interface outputdevices. Such human interface output devices may be stimulating thesenses of one or more human users through, for example, tactile output,sound, light, and smell/taste. Such human interface output devices mayinclude tactile output devices (for example tactile feedback by thetouch-screen (910), data-glove, or joystick (905), but there can also betactile feedback devices that do not serve as input devices. Forexample, such devices may be audio output devices (such as: speakers(909), headphones (not depicted)), visual output devices (such asscreens 910 to include CRT screens, LCD screens, plasma screens, OLEDscreens, each with or without touch-screen input capability, each withor without tactile feedback capability—some of which may be capable tooutput two dimensional visual output or more than three dimensionaloutput through means such as stereographic output; virtual-realityglasses (not depicted), holographic displays and smoke tanks (notdepicted)), and printers (not depicted).

Computer system (900) can also include human accessible storage devicesand their associated media such as optical media including CD/DVD ROM/RW(920) with CD/DVD or the like media (921), thumb-drive (922), removablehard drive or solid state drive (923), legacy magnetic media such astape and floppy disc (not depicted), specialized ROM/ASIC/PLD baseddevices such as security dongles (not depicted), and the like.

Those skilled in the art should also understand that term “computerreadable media” as used in connection with the presently disclosedsubject matter does not encompass transmission media, carrier waves, orother transitory signals.

Computer system (900) can also include interface to one or morecommunication networks. Networks can for example be wireless, wireline,optical. Networks can further be local, wide-area, metropolitan,vehicular and industrial, real-time, delay-tolerant, and so on. Examplesof networks include local area networks such as Ethernet, wireless LANs,cellular networks to include GSM, 3G, 4G, 5G, LTE and the like, TVwireline or wireless wide area digital networks to include cable TV,satellite TV, and terrestrial broadcast TV, vehicular and industrial toinclude CANBus, and so forth. Certain networks commonly require externalnetwork interface adapters that attached to certain general purpose dataports or peripheral buses (949) (such as, for example USB ports of thecomputer system (900); others are commonly integrated into the core ofthe computer system (900) by attachment to a system bus as describedbelow (for example Ethernet interface into a PC computer system orcellular network interface into a smartphone computer system). Using anyof these networks, computer system (900) can communicate with otherentities. Such communication can be uni-directional, receive only (forexample, broadcast TV), uni-directional send-only (for example CANbus tocertain CANbus devices), or bi-directional, for example to othercomputer systems using local or wide area digital networks. Suchcommunication can include communication to a cloud computing environment(955). Certain protocols and protocol stacks can be used on each ofthose networks and network interfaces as described above.

Aforementioned human interface devices, human-accessible storagedevices, and network interfaces (954) can be attached to a core (940) ofthe computer system (900).

The core (940) can include one or more Central Processing Units (CPU)(941), Graphics Processing Units (GPU) (942), specialized programmableprocessing units in the form of Field Programmable Gate Areas (FPGA)(943), hardware accelerators (944) for certain tasks, and so forth.These devices, along with Read-only memory (ROM) (945), Random-accessmemory (RAM) (946), internal mass storage such as internal non-useraccessible hard drives, SSDs, and the like, may be connected through asystem bus (948). In some computer systems, the system bus (948) can beaccessible in the form of one or more physical plugs to enableextensions by additional CPUs, GPU, and the like. The peripheral devicescan be attached either directly to the core's system bus (948), orthrough a peripheral bus (949). Architectures for a peripheral businclude PCI, USB, and the like. A graphics adapter (950) may be includedin the core (940).

CPUs (941), GPUs (942), FPGAs (943), and accelerators (944) can executecertain instructions that, in combination, can make up theaforementioned computer code. That computer code can be stored in ROM(945) or RAM (946). Transitional data can be also be stored in RAM(946), whereas permanent data can be stored for example, in the massstorage (947) that is internal. Fast storage and retrieve to any of thememory devices can be enabled through the use of cache memory, that canbe closely associated with one or more CPU (941), GPU (942), massstorage (947), ROM (945), RAM (946), and the like.

The computer readable media can have computer code thereon forperforming various computer-implemented operations. The media andcomputer code can be those specially designed and constructed for thepurposes of the present disclosure, or they can be of the kind wellknown and available to those having skill in the computer software arts.

As an example and not by way of limitation, the computer system (900)having architecture, and specifically the core (940) can providefunctionality as a result of processor(s) (including CPUs, GPUs, FPGA,accelerators, and the like) executing software embodied in one or moretangible, computer-readable media. Such computer-readable media can bemedia associated with user-accessible mass storage as introduced above,as well as certain storage of the core (940) that are of non-transitorynature, such as core-internal mass storage (947) or ROM (945). Thesoftware implementing various embodiments of the present disclosure canbe stored in such devices and executed by core (940). Acomputer-readable medium can include one or more memory devices orchips, according to particular needs. The software can cause the core(940) and specifically the processors therein (including CPU, GPU, FPGA,and the like) to execute particular processes or particular parts ofparticular processes described herein, including defining datastructures stored in RAM (946) and modifying such data structuresaccording to the processes defined by the software. In addition or as analternative, the computer system can provide functionality as a resultof logic hardwired or otherwise embodied in a circuit (for example:accelerator (944)), which can operate in place of or together withsoftware to execute particular processes or particular parts ofparticular processes described herein. Reference to software canencompass logic, and vice versa, where appropriate. Reference to acomputer-readable media can encompass a circuit (such as an integratedcircuit (IC)) storing software for execution, a circuit embodying logicfor execution, or both, where appropriate. The present disclosureencompasses any suitable combination of hardware and software.

While this disclosure has described several non-limiting exampleembodiments, there are alterations, permutations, and various substituteequivalents, which fall within the scope of the disclosure. It will thusbe appreciated that those skilled in the art will be able to devisenumerous systems and methods which, although not explicitly shown ordescribed herein, embody the principles of the disclosure and are thuswithin the spirit and scope thereof

What is claimed is:
 1. A method performed by an unmanned aerial system(UAS), the method comprising: obtaining first digital information thatindicates a position of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of the UAS;obtaining second digital information that identifies a zone of a Noticeto Airmen (NOTAM); determining whether an airspace violation hasoccurred by comparing the position of the UAV with the zone of theNOTAM, based on the first digital information and the second digitalinformation; and controlling the UAS to warn a user of the UAS about theairspace violation occurring or potentially occurring, or controllingthe UAV to auto return or land, based on the determining.
 2. The methodof claim 1, wherein the second digital information includes one or moreparameters that indicate at least one from among a location coordinateof the zone, a radius of the zone, an effective date of the NOTAM, aceiling of the zone, a floor of the zone, and a status of exemption ofthe UAV from a prohibition of the NOTAM.
 3. The method of claim 2,wherein the NOTAM is a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR).
 4. The methodof claim 2, wherein at least a portion of the second digital informationis in a JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) format.
 5. The method of claim2, wherein at least a portion of the second digital information has adictionary data type.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtainingthe second digital information comprises obtaining, by the UAV, thesecond digital information via a first wireless connection to a networkthat is external to the UAS, and the determining whether the airspaceviolation has occurred is performed by at least one processor of theUAV.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtaining the second digitalinformation comprises obtaining, by a controller of the UAS, the seconddigital information via a first wireless connection to a network that isexternal to the UAS, the controller comprises at least one processor andis configured to control the UAV via a second wireless connection to theUAV, and the determining whether the airspace violation has occurred isperformed by the at least one processor of the controller of the UAS. 8.The method of claim 1, the UAS comprises the UAV and a controllerconfigured to control the UAV via a first wireless connection, each ofthe UAV and the controller comprising at least one processor, theobtaining the second digital information comprises obtaining, by onefrom among the UAV and the controller, the second digital informationvia a second wireless connection to a network that is external to theUAS, and the determining whether the airspace violation has occurred isperformed by the at least one processor of the other from among the UAVand the controller.
 9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:updating an aeronautical chart, that is stored in the UAS, with thesecond digital information that is obtained.
 10. The method of claim 1,wherein the obtaining the second digital information comprises obtainingthe second digital information from a server, via a wireless connectionto a network that is external to the UAS.
 11. An unmanned aerial system(UAS) comprising: an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV); and a controllerconfigured to wirelessly communicate with the UAV and control the UAV,wherein at least one from among the UAV and the controller comprises: atleast one processor; and memory comprising computer code, the computercode configured to, when executed by the at least one processor, causethe at least one processor to: determine whether an airspace violationhas occurred by comparing a position of the UAV with a zone of a Noticeto Airmen (NOTAM), based on first digital information and second digitalinformation obtained by the at least one processor, and warn a user ofthe UAS about the airspace violation occurring or potentially occurring,or controlling the UAV to auto return or land, based on thedetermination, the first digital information indicates the position ofthe UAV, and the second digital information identifies the zone of theNOTAM.
 12. The UAS of claim 11, wherein the second digital informationincludes one or more parameters that indicate at least one from among alocation coordinate of the zone, a radius of the zone, an effective dateof the NOTAM, a ceiling of the zone, a floor of the zone, and a statusof exemption of the UAV from a prohibition of the NOTAM.
 13. The UAS ofclaim 12, wherein the NOTAM is a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR). 14.The UAS of claim 12, wherein at least a portion of the second digitalinformation is in a JavaScript Object Notation (JSON) format.
 15. TheUAS of claim 12, wherein at least a portion of the second digitalinformation has a dictionary data type.
 16. The UAS of claim 11, whereinthe UAV is configured to obtain the second digital information via awireless connection to a network that is external to the UAS, and theUAV comprises the memory and the at least one processor, and the UAV isconfigured to determine whether the airspace violation has occurredbased on the first digital information and the second digitalinformation.
 17. The UAS of claim 11, wherein the controller isconfigured to obtain the second digital information via a first wirelessconnection to a network that is external to the UAS, and the controllercomprises the memory and the at least one processor, and the controlleris configured to determine whether the airspace violation has occurredbased on the first digital information and the second digitalinformation.
 18. The UAS of claim 11, wherein one from among the UAV andthe controller is configured to obtain the second digital informationvia a wireless connection to a network that is external to the UAS, andthe other from among the UAV and the controller comprises the memory andthe at least one processor and is configured to determine whether theairspace violation has occurred based on the first digital informationand the second digital information.
 19. The UAS of claim 11, wherein thecomputer code is further configured to, when executed by the at leastone processor, control the at least one processor to update anaeronautical chart, that is stored in the UAS, with the second digitalinformation that is obtained.
 20. A non-transitory computer-readablemedium storing computer code that is configured to, when executed by atleast one processor of an unmanned aerial system (UAS), cause the atleast one processor to: determine whether an airspace violation hasoccurred by comparing a position of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) ofthe UAS with a zone of a Notice to Airmen (NOTAM), based on firstdigital information and second digital information obtained by the atleast one processor of the UAS; and warn a user of the UAS about theairspace violation occurring or potentially occurring, or control theUAV to auto return or land, based on the determination, wherein thefirst digital information indicates the position of the UAV, and thesecond digital information identifies the zone of the NOTAM.